Spring construction



United States Patent [72] Inventors Walter V. Slominski [56] References Cited E SE M d k G t K t k UNITED STATES PATENTS c an us y, eorge own, en uc y 9 [211 Ape-- 156,988 2802:??? 1332? 5.225;: 2228? [22] Filed Sept. 3,1968 [45] Patented Nov. 10, 1970 Primary Examiner-Arthur L. La Point [73] Assignee Hoover Ball and Bearing Company y Olsen and Stephenson Saline, Mich., a corporation of Michigan ABSTRACT: A seating structure having a metal frame and a [54] gm g F gP plurality of sinuous wire springs bridging opposite rail mem- 2 alms rawmg bers of the frame. The opposite rail members have slotted US. Cl 267/110 flanges projecting inwardly of the frame on which the ends of A47c 23/26 the wire springs are mounted, and loops at the ends of the Field of Search 267/ 102- springs extend through the slots and are snap fitted over tangs 1 12; 5/260; 287/l89.36 struck out ofthe body portion of the rail members.

Patented Nov. 10,1970

INVENTORS I Z 0 m. am 3 mm 6 MS T w 5A 3 Z WK L N. C 2 A M l W J Z 4 G w a 2 G 2 w ATTORNEYS 1 srkmc CONSTRUCTlON BACKGROUND or THEINVENTION The present invention relates to spring constructions particularly adapted for seating structures, and more particularly v to the arrangement whereby a plurality of sinuous wire spring members are assembled on a metal frame.

It is conventional practice to form sinuous wire spring members for use in the automobile and furniture industries, and

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to an improved construe tion and arrangement whereby spring members can be quickly and efficiently assembled in metal frames, and when fully as sembled, will be held securely in place so that optimum spring characteristics are realized.

According to a preferred form of the present invention, a spring construction is provided comprising a metal frame having a rail member with a side section and a flange projecting laterally therefrom, said flange having a slot extending through its base, and said side section having a tang projecting laterally therefrom at a location below said slot. A sinuout spring member is provided having a loop extending through said slot and seated against said side section in enclosing relation to said tang. The loop preferably is integrally formed in a torsion bar which functions to urge the loop firmly against the side section. The tang is shaped so that for assembly purposes,

the loop can be passed through the slot in the flange, and the loop will be snapped over the tang into its seated position as an incident to being inserted through the slot. In this arrangement, the slot has a length less than the length of the torsion bar so that the bar will be seated on the flange when the loop is snap fitted over the tang, thereby assuring that the end of the spring member will be retained in place during normal usage. The opposite end of the spring member is connected in a like manner to the rail member on the opposite side of the metal frame. A plurality of such spring members span or bridge the pair of opposite rail members so as to provide a resilient supporting surface for the seating structure. The frame member is formed of metal, and the tang is formed preferably by being struck out of the material of the side sections of the metal frame member. Thus, a seating structure is provided which can be assembled easily and rapidly, and when the wire spring members are assembled in place, they will be retained so that the ends of the spring members cannot readily be displaced or shifted.

Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved spring construction for use in the furniture and automobile industries.

Other objects of this invention will appear in the followingdescription and appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views.

I BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a spring construction embodying the present invention; FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2: and

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the spring construction.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Before explaining the present invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawing, since the invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

Referring now to the drawing, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described. The spring construction 10 includes the metal frame member 12 having a rail member 13 with a side section 14 and a flange 16 projecting laterally inwardly therefrom. The flange 16 has a plurality of slots 18 adjacent to its base, and the side section 14 has a plurality oftangs 20 struck out of its surface at locations spaced directly below each of the slots 18.

A similar rail member 21 is provided on the opposite side of the frame 12, and since it is constructed the same as rail member 13 it will not be described in detail.

A plurality of spring members 22 are supported on the opposite rail members 13 and 21, and only one of the spring members 22 willbe described in detail, because they are all constructed the same. The spring member 22 is a sinuous wire spring which is formed to define a plurality of loops 24 having torsion bars 26 and connecting bars 28. The torsion bar 30 at the one end of the spring member 22 has aloop 32 formed therein of a size so that it can be inserted through slot 18 and will fit over and enclose the associated tang 20, formed in the side section 14. This arrangement can be seen best in FIG. 2. The other end of the wire spring member 22 is similarly constructed and is similarly supported in the other rail member 21. As best seen in FIG. 3, the tang 20 is struck out of the side section 14 so that it has an inclined upper surface which diverges from the side section in a direction away from the slot and on which the lower end of the loop 32 can travel when the end of the spring member 22 is being inserted into the slot 18, and after the lower end of the loop has passed over the tang 20, it will snap into place below thetang, and loop 32 will be seated against the inner surface of the side section 14.

When the opposite end of the spring member 22 is inserted into the corresponding slot in the opposite rail 21, the two endmost torsion bars 30 will function to urge the loops 32 into their seated positions enclosing the associated tangs 20. Also, the endmost torsion bars 30, being longer than their corresponding slots 18, will seat on the upper surfaces of the flanges 16, thereby resulting in the ends of the spring members being resiliently locked in place so that they cannot be readily displaced during use.

Thus, it can be seen that the plurality of spring members 22 can quickly and easily be' snapped into place in the frame 12, and when snapped into place, they will be retained against displacement by the arch in each spring member 22 (FIG. 1). Also, during use the seating load on the spring members 22 tends to urge the loops 32 on the spring ends against the rails 13 and 21. Thus, the spring members will be held in the position for whichthey were designed to give the most desirable cushioning characteristics in the seating structure.

While the spring members 22 have been shown as sinuous or zigzag wire elements of uniform configuration, it will be understood that other desired shapes of spring members can be utilized. For example, the intermediate portions of the spring members can be stretched to provide a greater stiffness in the midportions of the spring members, if desired. It will also be recognized by those skilled in the art that other variations in the shapes of the loops of the spring members 22 can be util-v therefrom adjacent said slot, said tang having an inclined surface .which diverges from the side section in a direction away from the slot and is in substantial'alignment with said slot, a

spring member having an end portion supported on said rail member adjacent said slot and having an open loop projecting through said slotand extending past said tang in engagement with said side section whereby said tang is engageable with said loop to preclude withdrawal of said loop from-said slot, 

